Professor Remus Lupin?: A Tale About our Favorite DADA Teacher
by PinkRoseKoolKat
Summary: Remus couldn't believe that Dumbledore wanted him to teach at Hogwarts. Remus battles with self-doubt and reminded of the pain of all he has lost over the years. Was he even qualified to be a teacher? I do not own Harry Potter, the fantastic JK Rowling does. Hope you like my new story! :)
1. Chapter 1

Professor Remus Lupin?

It was a beautiful summer morning, although after his difficult night before, Remus Lupin would have to disagree. The sunlight that streamed through his small apartment's bedroom window burned his eyes, which were exhausted from his monthly transformation into a werewolf. His limbs ached, there were scratches and bites all over his body, and perhaps worst of all, he felt lonely. Of course this wasn't a new feeling as he had been lonely for years now, starting back when his parents were killed in a car accident during his last year at Hogwarts. His friends helped him through the pain of losing his family, but now they too were gone. James and Lily Potter were murdered twelve years ago this Halloween, and his heart still ached at the fact that he would never see their warm, smiling faces again. He used to consider Sirius Black one of his best friends, but now he was nothing more than a memory, especially since he betrayed James and Lily to You-Know-Who, and then killed Peter Pettigrew, another one of their friends. In one night he lost everything that mattered to him, his soul was shattered, and he still hadn't recovered the pieces. Remus shook his head from his negative thoughts and winced in pain from his achy limbs as he got out of bed, grabbed his wand to heal his wounds and then got ready for the day.

After his morning routine of showering, dressing, and having a cup of Earl Grey tea with a thick chocolate bar, which always made him feel a little better after a rough night, he read the Daily Prophet at the breakfast table in his tiny kitchen. Today's headline on the Daily Prophet, however, made him suddenly feel ill: Sirius Black had escaped from Azkaban. The man who was once one of his closest friends was on the loose, and he had no idea what was on his agenda. Was Sirius out to get him? Would he return to You-Know-Who? He could never really believe that Sirius, who was like a brother to James, could betray the Potters, but who else could have? Surely- His thoughts were interrupted when suddenly a small, black owl swooped in through the kitchen window, carrying a letter. The owl dropped the letter on his lap, and Remus said "Hello there, what's this?" The owl nudged his arm affectionately, and Remus smiled as he patted its back gently and gave it a bit of his chocolate. Remus picked up the envelope and read the letter, but couldn't believe it: Dumbledore wanted him to teach at Hogwarts? He was excited, but also nervous: What if he failed the Professor who had always supported him? What if word got out that he was a werewolf? These questions buzzed around in his mind as he paced back and forth, and the owl watched him carefully. He decided that it would be best to visit his old Headmaster and talk it out before he made any hasty decisions. After thanking the owl, who flew out the window, he put his wand in his pocket, grabbed some floo powder from the bowl on the top of his refrigerator, and quickly walked over to his fireplace, he threw the floo powder in and said clearly "The Three Broomsticks!" and was off.

When he arrived in the fireplace of The Three Broomsticks, he dusted the soot off of his old, chestnut brown sports coat and jeans and walked to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, still limping slightly of the pain from the night before. When he arrived at the gates of the school, he smiled at the fond memories of his life that flooded his mind, but his smile quickly turned grim as he thought of how much had changed, and how much he had lost since then. "Remus Lupin? I wa'nt expectin' to see yer! How are ye?" said a booming voice he immediately recognized as "Hagrid! Good to see you! It's been too long!" Remus said as Hagrid opened the gate and shook his hand. "Good to see yer as well! You don' look so good though, are ye alright?" Hagrid said with a slightly worried voice as he noticed the heavy bags under Remus's eyes, his paler-than-usual complexion, and slightly scratched-up face. "Was it a transformation nigh' for ye last nigh'?" He asked with a low voice, and Remus looked surprised. "You knew? Dumbledore told you?" Hagrid shook his head, and said quietly "Nah, I figured it out fer meself. I heard howlin' comin' from the Shriekin' Shack som'times, and I pu' it together with the symptoms an' such, but don' ye worry: I ne'er told a soul. It doe'nt make yer who yer are, Remus. You were a grea' student 'ere, and an even bet'er person, an' ye still are." His eyes crinkled as he smiled through his heavily bearded face, and put his hand on Remus's shoulder. Remus smiled at Hagrid, and was truly touched by his kind words. "Thank you, Hagrid. You were always one of my favorite people to talk to. How are things going for you?" Hagrid smiled once again, and said "Good! An', well, just between us, I'm er, gettin' a new job: I'm gonna teach Care o' Magical Creatures this year! Good man, Dumbledore is, I still have me duties as gamekeeper o' course, but I can' wait!" Remus smiled at the half-giant, and said "I'm really happy for you, Hagrid. I have also been offered a new job here: Professor Dumbledore wants me to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, that's actually what I'm here to see him about." Hagrid said "Thanks! And oh? Well I wish yer luck, that job seems to always needin' to be filled an'more… an'ways, Dumbledore shoul' be in his office if ye need te see him. Good talkin' to yer, Remus." Remus shook hands with Hagrid once again, and said "Thank you Hagrid, it was great to catch up, we'll have to do so again soon!" Hagrid nodded as he started walking away "Ye know where I live, so feel free te visit me anytime!" Remus said "Will do!" and headed for Dumbledore's office.

As Remus made his way through the hallways to Dumbledore's office, his head once again filled with memories of his time at Hogwarts. The Great Hall: where many pranks from the four of them would ensue. The Library: where he and Lily would often study and do their homework together. The Hospital Wing: where he spent a good amount of time recuperating from his transformations, but also had the best times there with his friends all around him. He shed a tear, but quickly wiped it away as he reached Dumbledore's office door, and remembered the password Dumbledore had given him if he should need anything. "Lemon Drops" he said to the griffin statues, and was let in. As he walked inside, he heard Dumbledore's calm voice say "Ah, Remus Lupin, I thought you might stop by, do come in and have a seat." Remus did so, and said "Hello Professor Dumbledore," and Dumbledore sat down at his desk, and after cleaning his half-moon glasses with a piece of cloth, said calmly "I see that you had a rather difficult night last night. How are you feeling?" Remus said as he nervously chuckled "Is it that obvious?" Dumbledore said "Well if I didn't know you as well as I do, I would say that you look as if you got very little sleep and were attacked by rabid dog on your way here." He chuckled, his eyes twinkling slightly. Remus put his hand through his sandy-brown hair, something he did once in a while when he was nervous, and changed the subject, saying "Professor, I wanted to talk to you about the position you're offering me. I really appreciate it, but-" Dumbledore held up his hand, signaling Remus to pause, and said "You're worried that if your secret is revealed, how parents will feel about a werewolf teaching their children, and that you might harm my reputation as well as the rest of the staff here at Hogwarts. You are also concerned that you are not qualified to be a professor." Remus looked surprised, but nodded. "I understand your feelings, Remus, and I thought you might say or think these things. But no one shall hear about your condition from me, nor from the other teachers here. You know, the staff here at Hogwarts, including myself, feel that you were an outstanding student here as a boy, and will be a wonderful addition. You got all O's in your Defense Against the Dark Arts OWLS here at Hogwarts, so I am more than confident that you will succeed as a teacher." Dumbledore said calmly, and smiled at Remus with that twinkle in his eye. Remus smiled, and said "Thank you, that means a lot to me Professor."

Dumbledore smiled, and said "There are a few things I should probably tell you while you're here, however. One, is that Professor Snape will be making a Wolfsbane potion for you to take every month the day of your transformation, just as a precaution." Remus cringed slightly at the thought of that potion, let alone the man making it. He knew Severus Snape very well, and knew how much he hated him and his friends, especially James. "Lily used to make that potion for me whenever I stayed at hers and James's place so that I didn't go running through the forest and terrifying Muggles, I would just curl up in their basement. I remember the potion tasted horrible, but right after Lily used to make us some hot chocolate and we'd just sit at her kitchen table and talk." Remus said as he smiled fondly at the memory, and Dumbledore smiled as well. "Another thing that you've probably heard by now is that Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban," Remus nodded silently, and Dumbledore continued "I got an owl from Cornelius Fudge this morning, announcing to me that the Ministry is going to post Dementors around the school." Remus looked shocked, "Has the Ministry gone mad? Do they realize how dangerous the Dementors are? Surely they can't be serious, what about the students here?" Dumbledore nodded "I quite agree with your sentiments, Remus, but they believe that the Dementors will catch Black, and I have no voice in the matter. All we can do is hope that they catch Black soon." Remus said "I suppose you're right, Professor." Dumbledore continued "And lastly, Remus, I must ask you something. Do not take offense to this, but do you know anything of Black's whereabouts? I know that you two were once good friends, and therefore I must ensure that you aren't putting yourself in trouble." Remus nodded "Of course, Professor I understand. No I am not aware of where he is, frankly I hope I don't run into him again after what he did…" he paused as he felt a bitter mix of anger and sadness. Dumbledore noticed the conflict in Remus's eyes, and said "Well Remus, I suppose we've cleared the air of your concerns, and I have a meeting with Fudge in a half-hour, and I wish to prepare for it." Remus got up and said to Dumbledore "Yes, thank you so much for your time, Professor. It was good to see you again and thank you for the opportunity. I will see you on the first day of school," and shook hands with him. Dumbledore smiled, and said "You're very welcome, Remus. If you need to speak with me again, you know where to find me. Goodbye." Remus said "Goodbye" and walked out of Dumbledore's office.

As he walked through the corridors once again, heading to Hogsmeade to leave and go back to his apartment, he was stopped by a strict voice that said "Remus Lupin! What are you doing here?" He recognized the voice as Professor McGonagall, and said "Hello Professor! I was just-" but was interrupted by a firm hug from the teacher. "It's good to see you! Are you alright?" Remus chuckled as he hugged the maternal teacher back, and when they released he said "I'm fine, Professor, just a transformation night last night. And it's good to see you too. I'm actually going to be teaching here now as well! I just finished talking with Professor Dumbledore." McGonagall smiled, and said "I see, well in that case you'll sleep well tonight. And so I heard! I'm sure you'll make an outstanding teacher; you always were a hard-working student, one of the best of your year." Remus smiled and said "Thank you Professor. Of course I also got into quite a bit of trouble with James and Sirius," McGonagall said "Oh yes, I remember that quite well," as they both laughed for a moment, and finally Remus said "Well I should best be off, but I hope that we can catch up again soon, Professor McGonagall." McGonagall smiled and said "I hope so too. Goodbye, Professor Lupin. I wish you luck." Remus smiled, and walked back to Hogsmeade, where he apparated back to his apartment. He would have to get used to being called "Professor Lupin", and looked forward to what he hoped would be a successful year at Hogwarts.


	2. One Month Later

One month later…

"Remus R.J. Lupin" he heard a girl say aloud as he was in the midst of a short nap in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express. "How is it she knows everything?" a boy asked, and the girl replied, sounding annoyed "It's on his suitcase, Ronald." "Oh." He replied, and another boy chuckled. Remus felt someone sit next to him, and he heard the girl say "Do you think he's alright?" the boy sitting next to him said "Yeah, probably just taking a nap. Do you think he's the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?" the girl said "Possibly." As she took her cat out of it's cage, and the boy sitting next to her said "Hey! Don't let that beast out of it's cage! It might eat Scabbers!" "Oh shut up Ronald, Crookshanks is a very nice cat, and probably wouldn't eat something that resembles a dish rag!" she hissed back at Ronald. He heard the boy next to him chuckle, and Ronald said to him "Harry! It's not funny!" Harry? Could it be- James and Lily's son? He was too tired still from the transformation the night before, but he would be able to think more clearly about it after his nap.

Remus awoke, hearing screams and gasps: it felt extremely chilly all of a sudden. He pulled out his wand, and immediately saw a Dementor, sucking the happiness out of a boy. He held up his wand to the Dementor and said "None of us is hiding Sirius Black under our robes, go now!" When the Dementor didn't stop, Remus said "_Expecto Patronum_!" under his breath, and a silvery light pushed the Dementor away from the boy, and out of the compartment. "Harry!" said the girl, and she and Ronald came over to Harry, who appeared to be having mini seizures. Remus quickly walked past the group to the cart of sweets to buy a chocolate bar, and by the time he got back, Harry was just coming out of it. He watched as the girl and Ronald helped him up, and she asked "Are you okay?" Harry looked disoriented, but answered "I'm alright, thanks. Did you hear someone screaming?" "No one was screaming, Harry," As Remus watched from afar, the moment he saw Harry's emerald eyes: Lily's eyes, he knew this was the Potter's son. He had grown so much since he last saw Harry as a baby. He looked just like James as a boy, and he smiled. He snapped out of his thoughts and quickly said "Here, eat this. It will help," as he gave Harry a thick piece of chocolate. Harry looked questioningly at the chocolate, and then at Remus, who said as he left the compartment to talk to the conductor "Eat, you'll feel better." and left with a smile. This year was going to be very interesting indeed.


End file.
